Blog #7

    After viewing school webpages to find teachers information, class planners and links, I found that teachers use other options when given the choice. I viewed the Sail High School website and discovered their teacher page directory, where I clicked and searched around for information provided both publicly and privately for their students and their families. While searching the website, I discovered most teachers have no updated their teacher profile or their link sent me to another website like Edmodo. Some teachers provided personal information, updated calendars, assignments, and links to resources such as the class textbook. Some pages with links to various websites were locked due to me not having class access, which is a great way to keep information private and allows students to use databases for school.

 https://www.leonschools.net/Page/47124

    I use technology in my classroom each and everyday. From the moment the students walk in the room in the morning I have an interactive morning meeting screen up on the board with a set timer and bell work for them to complete. This screen is fun and festive, being based off of the day and month we are in. I also use technology as a teaching tool, lots of videos, books online, and interactive activities to keep my students engaged. They also have their behavior trackers on the computer, which I pop up on the screen throughout the day so the students can see their progress. This tool is ClassDojo, a website that allows you to build you class, provides resources and allows you to track using a points systems, even parents can join in and watch how their child is preforming. My second favorite collaboration and calendar enabled website and platform for my use, the students and even the parents is Canvas. Of course, we are all exposed to Canvas in college but imagine having all of your work and information in elementary school on the computer and in one place. This tool is amazing, which we all know, do to the ease of use and creativity you can add to your class account.

    After using PBWorks, the wiki platform was not my favorite. I found the website to be confusing and not user friendly. My group and I all had to play around on the website to figure out how to make any changes and establish our main page. After we got the hang of things, it was a little bit more clear to use but overall I would not pick wiki to use on a day to day basis or to implement into my classroom due to the lack of creativity you can add as a teacher and the difficulty of use. Kids, especially younger students, need a platform that is well laid out and come with ease, I did not find wiki as a tool that should be implemented into younger classrooms and should only be used in more advanced situations where students have more experience with technology.